


The Perfect Man

by cute_cat



Category: 30歳まで童貞だと魔法使いになれるらしい | 30-sai Made Doutei da to Mahou Tsukai ni Nareru Rashii (TV), 30歳まで童貞だと魔法使いになれるらしい | Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?! (Manga), Cherry Magic!
Genre: Backstory
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:02:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28130601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cute_cat/pseuds/cute_cat
Summary: What could Kurosawa's life have been like before the events of the show? Here's my take.
Comments: 11
Kudos: 28





	1. Surrounded but Alone

As a child Kurosawa was a friendly kid. He was polite, well-mannered and approachable and was often with a large group of people. He learned early on that the easiest way to make friends was simply to listen and take an interest in what they liked. He was included in everyone's birthday parties and had fun with his friends on school trips. It was probably the best time of his life because he was only ever himself. 

By middle school, Kurosawa showed both academic and physical prowess. His parents told him to get into a good university, but Kurosawa was always driven to be the best. He put in a lot of effort into his studies, went to cram school and put his all into studying. As a result, he was consistently first in his school. Kurosawa did track & field and was a good long-distance runner. He had built up good stamina, and enjoyed being alone with his thoughts for a while. He got up early and trained hard and ended up succeeding in that too. 

However, as Kurosawa grew older he noticed that his approach didn’t seem to yield the same results. There were still people around him, but he couldn’t put his finger on why it felt different. Now, people only approached him if they wanted to be tutored in a subject before exams, or wanted his notes. At first, he didn’t mind helping them out, but he quickly realized that their ‘friendship’ had become transactional.

It was always difficult for him to say no to people, but once it started to stress him out he was resolute. He stopped sharing his notes with his peers though he did offer to create a study group with them before the test. He still got along well enough to exchange pleasantries but slowly people stopped wanting to hang out with him after school. He saw that even the few people who wanted to become friends with him wanted to be friends with the Honor Student Kurosawa and seemed disappointed to find out that he was like them - human and flawed. 

Another problem that occurred was the attention he got from his female peers. It was very flattering to have that type of attention… at least when it was the first few times, but it quickly brought with it additional problems from his peers in his class who envied him. After Valentine’s he found that his male classmates were more on edge, passive-aggressive and annoyed with him if their crush ended up giving their handmade chocolates to Kurosawa instead. 

What made it worse, in his opinion, was that he wasn’t treated like an outsider or bullied. At least then he would understand how the class felt about him. He could at least then feel self-pity and express the isolation that he felt. Instead, they seemed to put him on a pedestal and made him a sort of gold standard. He was surrounded by people who saw him as an Honor Student that no one at school seemed to realize that he was just a person. He hated being sought after and not seen, not by the teachers who used him like a yard-stick to measure success and lecture other students about the importance of studying nor his peers who thought of him as infallible. 

Day by day passed with more of the same treatment from his peers, that he learned quickly to put on a mask. At school he was ‘Honor Student Kurosawa’. He would be kind to the people around him, engage in small talk and help them out within reason. If he did this, he didn’t have to worry about being rejected for who he was - it would only be the Honor Student who they didn’t like, not him. He secretly hoped that someone could dislike his persona and call him out on how fake he was being. But to his immense dismay, people seemed to like this version of him. It started to get hard to remember when he was putting on a mask and when he was being himself anymore. 

After a few years of feeling lonely, he resolved to give dating a choice. Maybe he couldn’t befriend his peers, but maybe one of the girls who liked him could like him. The real him. The imperfect him. So, when he was entering high school he went out with a cute girl who confessed her love to him. It was a warm spring day, when he first started dating her.


	2. The Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurosawa Yuuichi goes on his first date!

Dating like anything new made Kurosawa feel nervous and giddy. He spent nearly an hour laying out different outfits on his bed, trying them on and assessing them in the mirror. His movie date had been set with Hana-chan in three hours. He wanted to get to the movie theatre early... just in case.

He had out five shirts and different coats or sweaters he was trying to layer on top of it. How much is too much? Would that come off as cool or overdressing? Unfortunately, as he was thinking about whether to go with a pullover or a hoodie, his sister burst into his room without knocking (When did she ever? He thought ruefully) and laughed at his dilemma.

“Whoa, you really are grown up now, aren’t you Yuiichi?” she asked with a teasing smile.

“What do you want aneki?” He asked curtly.

She examined the outfits he had on his bed smiling to herself. 

“That one, it looks like you made an effort but didn’t try too hard.” She said pointing to a pair of dark jeans and a soft cream hoodie he laid on the bed next to most of his wardrobe in a neat pile on his bed.

“Don’t you think a hoodie is too casual?” He asked, uncertain whether to trust her advice.

“Yuiichi, I know you like to dress up, but it’ll be fine.” She remarked reassuringly.

“No coats! It’s not that cold out and it’ll be overkill. Trust me.” She remarked firmly. 

“Are you taking her to a movie?” She asked excitedly.

“Oh there’s this really romantic one she’d love based off an anime-” She started with her eyes glinting dreamily. 

Kurosawa knew that once she got that look in her eyes he’d have to hear about this anime inspired movie for the rest of the week, and he did not have time to deal with her latest obsession right now.

“Thanks for your help, I need to leave now-” He said, pushing her out of the room. He held her shoulders firmly and showed her the door. 

His sister looked hurt and for a brief minute after he shut the door Yuuichi felt a twinge of guilt at brushing her off. 

“Yuuichi, you better treat her well!” She commented before storming off to her room.

“Just focus on yourself!” He retorted through the closed door.

\--- 

The weather was pleasant, warmer than average for a spring day and like his sister mentioned and was glad he didn’t end up wearing a coat. The air was nice and crisp and he could see the trees start to create buds, and the flowers poking out of the ground. He silently thanked his sister for helping him out and promised to endure her annoying questions once he returned home.

He arrived at the movie theatre an hour early. He walked slowly to the destination and decided to check out the neighbourhood to see if there was any way to kill time. He ended up passing an arcade, a bookshop and a cafe nearby. All these places could be fun to visit after the movie he thought. Or on subsequent dates. He scoured the roads nearby in search of places to eat and converse after the movie if they decided to do so. He pulled out a mini journal he always carried with him and took notes of the street names with shops that appeared to have food she might like that met his budget for next time. If there was a next time, he corrected himself, silently scolding himself for jumping ahead of himself. 

The streets were lively and busy, he noticed a couple of kids passing by in a large group shouting excitedly about some anime they liked and smiled to himself. A change in his daily routine was nice. He was always just studying or running so having time to enjoy a leisurely walk made him feel refreshed. Maybe dating could be just what he needs to feel seen. 

Kurosawa enjoyed the walk back to the movie theatre they were to meet in front of and kept a lookout for Hana-chan arriving 15 minutes early. He glanced at his watch as the minutes ticked on by passing the scheduled meeting time, wondering whether he got the location wrong or if the subway was just running late. He double checked his journal… no this was definitely the place they agreed to meet at. His brows furrowed in confusion. Once he was satisfied that he didn’t misunderstand he simply decided there was nothing to do but wait, perhaps something came up and she was running late.

He sat near the entrance of the movie theatre in front of a bed of flowers and observed the pedestrians. He would wait half an hour, and if she didn’t show it means he got stood up and would just go home. It was a nice warm day and worst case scenario he could grab some food and spend time at the arcade nearby. Feeling better now that he planned his response and accepted being stood up as a possibility, some of the tension in his shoulders relaxed a bit.

He noticed a girl running at full speed towards him and stood up in anticipation. Hana-chan wore a nice soft-pink blouse with a cream cardigan and a mid-length blue skirt . Kurosawa could tell that she made a lot of effort to look her best for the date. 

“I’m so sorry, the subway-” She wheezed gesturing at the direction she was coming from.

“Ah, take your time. Have a seat for a while.” He gestured to where he was sitting and waited for her to catch her breath patiently.

“I’m so sorry to keep you waiting. I missed the subway.” She said sincerely. She got up and bowed formally.

“It’s fine… I wasn’t here that long.” He lied. He went to a nearby vending machine and bought her a water bottle.

“When you are ready, let’s go in.” He said with what he hoped was a reassuring smile. 

She nodded gratefully, took the water bottle and had a drink. They sat in silence until she caught her breath. Kurosawa noticed that her flats were scuffed from running to see him and felt once again the weight her words carried. He exhaled relieved that he wasn’t stood up after all and sat next to her until she felt ready to go in. 

They went into the movie theatre and missed the comedy movie that they intended to watch, and instead ended up watching a romance movie. Kurosawa bought her some popcorn and drinks beforehand and they settled comfortably in their seats. The movie wasn’t bad, Kurosawa enjoyed romance movies being constantly subjugated to them by his sister. However, he did feel awkward having a first date there. He knew that this was the sort of thing people did on dates but that did nothing to quiet his anxiety. So instead, as he always did, he put on a smile and endured it. He ate some popcorn and occasionally brushed hands with her. 

As the romance between the main leads in the movie began to develop, he noticed her looking at him with nervous expectation. Should he kiss her? That seemed a bit much. Maybe hand holding would suffice in a situation like this. He slowly and tentatively reached out and put his hand on hers, checking her reaction. She seemed surprised and shy and intertwined their fingers with a smile. Her hands were soft and warm, he thought. This wasn’t so bad… he thought and returned his attention towards the movie.

Once the movie was over he gently broke off the touch and led her outside the theatre. They discussed the movie for a while outside the theatre, and finding that it was getting late called it quits for the day. They exchanged promises to call each other and departed amicably.

Kurosawa was in a good mood when he came home. He went into his room after dinner and relaxed in the comfort of his own bed. He laid down in his bed and felt a sense of immense relief. The date had gone well despite the rocky start. There was a tension that he felt lifted only when in the solace of his own room. He wasn’t sure what this meant yet, but he decided that gradually through sharing more experiences with Hana-chan he’d come to like her as she liked him. Maybe then the tension and unease he felt in her presence will begin to dwindle. People grow on each other he reminded himself.

Kurosawa’s sister barged into her room and ended up sitting on his chair by his desk. She smiled at him expectantly.

“How was it?” She asked enthusiastically.

“It was fine. We ended up seeing a romance movie and held hands.” He said coolly.

“I’m glad!” She said excitedly. 

“Oh! Thanks for helping me out… earlier. With the outfit. You were right” He said finally slightly embarrassed at the admission. He sat up on the bed feeling exposed all of a sudden.

“I told you that you could trust me!” She exclaimed proudly. She looked like she was going to ask more questions when she suddenly fell quiet. Thinking. It unnerved him. His sister looked at him for a while, scrutinizing him with her gaze. She suddenly seemed to realize something. She came close to him and ruffled his hair like she used to do when he was younger. 

“Yuuichi-” She started unsure.

“Mhmm?” He asked slightly alarmed at her sudden affection. I wonder if she needs a favor, he thought skeptically. She’ll probably ask me to come do errands with her he thought trying to rationalize away his mounting discomfort.

His sister looked around the room for a while before meeting his gaze. Her eyes softened landing on him seeing him look guarded.

“No, it’s nothing. I’m glad you had a good first date.” She said finally. She got up from his chair and headed towards the door.

“You know… I’m always on your side right?” She asked looking at him seriously.

“Sure aneki.” He said, confused. He met her gaze and found that he couldn’t read hers. Usually she was an open-book, honest and free-spirited. She lived impulsively and was selfish. But she wasn’t the type to keep secrets. And she was never intentionally unkind. She teased him and annoyed him, but she’d never hurt him on purpose. He didn’t like the feeling that she seemed to be able to read his thoughts and come to a conclusion that he himself wasn’t able to reach yet.

“No matter what mom and dad say-” She started and sighed seeing how his body posture immediately became more closed off and his eyes darkened. She changed her approach knowing that bringing their parents up will not go over well.

“Good night, Yuiichi. If you ever need someone to listen to you talk to me anytime. Any. Time.” She said firmly punctuating each word like a command. She looked at him intensely expecting an answer.

“Yeah, okay. I will. Good night aneki.” He responded, having trouble holding her gaze. 

She gave him a small smile and left.

He wasn’t sure what just happened during the exchange… Why was she trying to reassure him? About what? Did it have to do with his date? He wasn’t sure but... he understood the promise of her unconditional acceptance of him underneath it all. He always knew his sister loved him, but this still felt different. More significant, monumental even. It was more like a promise. 

Why was she acting like this all of a sudden? He wondered. He decided it was best not to try to over-analyze her words. After all, she probably just was worried they’d become more distant when she moved out.

For the first time in a long time, he was able to sleep a little easier that night. His dreams were more pleasant and when he woke up from his dream he felt warm. His sister’s words helped him breathe easier once he realized that she was telling him he wasn’t alone. He knew that it probably wouldn’t be enough, but it was enough for now.


	3. The Move Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuiichi gets roped in helping his sister move out, but gets more than what he bargained for.

Kurosawa’s life continued on as expected, with the one addition of dating Hana-chan. Since Kurosawa was often busy with studying and his track and field season, during the school year his dates with Hana-chan were more mundane. Meeting up to study before tests together, going to school festivals together and meeting up in cafes or catching a movie on weekends when their schedules matched up. As a couple, they did start becoming more physically intimate. But it felt surprisingly empty, not physically but emotionally. He wasn’t sure why that was the case, perhaps the problem was that he was too much of a romantic at heart. He was subjected to a lot of romance movies and shows through his sister. He couldn’t expect life to be like a drama, he mused. 

The one big change happened during his summer vacation - his aneki was about to move out from their parents’ place into an apartment with her friend.

As usual, his sister coerced, annoyed and hinted at blackmailing Yuiichi into helping her pack and act as her personal muscle for the big day. As the days were counting down to his sister’s big day, Kurosawa Yuiichi sat on the ground in aneki’s room surrounded by piles of her clothes. There was clothing covering nearly every inch of her room nearly covering the entire floorspace of her room, and was even on all her furniture - her chair, her desk and all over her bed. He was there to help sort and pack away most of her clothing.

“Aneki, can’t you just sort out your clothes and I’ll fold them up and pack them. Please, let’s get this done before the year is over!” Yuiichi whined to her. Seeing all the clothing in her room still unorganized, it was no wonder why she called him. 

“I’m sorting them! If you try anything to my precious clothes and ‘forget to pack them’…” She glared at him. “Remember who bought you your favorite coat.” She warned.

He hated it when she brought up the coat she bought him. He didn’t dwell on it too much, but when it came to his birthday his sister spoiled him rotten. She had bought him a beautiful navy blue wool coat that he was sure would last him a lifetime. It was a beautiful navy blue that flattered his height, well-insulated and most importantly - _soft_. His mother found the bill in aneki’s room after a year, under her mattress and nearly fainted. It became a huge issue in their family with their parents yelling at his sister for spending so much money, but aneki promised to pay it off in installments all by herself using her earnings working her part-time job. He remembered watching her talk back to his parents confidently and felt both a sense of pride and a pang of jealousy. 

Their family allowance was modest, and to this day he had no clue how she was able to buy him that coat or why she chose to spend her money on him. No one told him how much it actually costs and as grateful as he was for the gift, he knew that his sister had every right to lord this over him until he started working. He planned to buy her a luxury bag once he got a job, just to stop her from bringing the coat up again.

Aneki didn’t shy away from convention, though her rebellion was usually quiet and subversive. Usually when her parents put pressure on her to get higher grades, she’d simply point out that her academic standing was already good and that she had no desire to aim for first in the school. After all, she was already in the top 20 in her school so she already had her options open to her career goals and would have no trouble getting a scholarship to university. Why should she sacrifice her sleep for moving up one or two more ranks? It’s not like she could jump from her current rank to number one so easily she pointed out.

Similarly, she refused pressure to join after school clubs to stand-out when it came time for university applications and instead she enjoyed her time dating boys and hanging out with friends. Their parents scolded her occasionally, but she never let it change her behavior. She stood her ground, and enjoyed her life in what his parents called ‘a frivolous manner’. He wasn’t sure whether or not he agreed with his parents, but he knew it probably didn’t matter since she seemed happy. His mom and dad just sighed and unconsciously or not transferred their expectations from her to Yuiichi.

He envied her ability to live so freely but felt the need to ease their parents disapproval, it was after all partially why he had to shoulder their parents expectations, since his sister made it very clear that she would not. It wasn’t too bad though, since he was a driven and competitive person by nature.

“Yuiichi! Stop spacing out and fold my dresses!” His sister shouted, pointing at the messy stack of clothing that was near him. 

“Did you finish sorting them already?” He asked looking through them and chiding how badly they were folded internally. How will she survive on her own? He wondered not for the first time.

“How are you going to survive without mom?” He mused, folding her dresses. Or me? He wondered internally.

“What do you mean? I have you.” She pointed out. She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world which annoyed him.

He stared at her in utter disbelief. 

“What are you talking about?” He asked, completely confused.

“You can help me out on the weekends! Do laundry, help with the dishes...” She said, her eyes sparkled. “After all, the coat-”

“Did you buy that coat just for this?” He couldn’t help but ask with some bite, the venom still seeping in his words despite his efforts to suppress it. As soon as he said the words he regretted it and chided himself for his lack of control. 

“As if!” She snorted, rolling her eyes. “You’d help me out anyways Yuiichi. You can’t say no to me.” She flipped her hair dismissively. She knew her brother well, and he was too kind to refuse her.

He knew she was right, but her reaction put him at ease. Then why did she buy me something so expensive? He wondered. It’s not like I asked her to… Sure, I may have stared at it too long when we went shopping together but...

He finished folding the dresses and sighed deeply taking a look at how little they progressed in an hour.

“Oh! I just remembered. A friend of mine-” She started.

“I have a girlfriend.” He pointed out. 

“Eww! No idiot!” She said, scrunching up her face. She pretended to gag in disgust.

“Well, last time…” He began feeling defensive and shuddered.

“Sorry! How many times do I have to apologize? I made you a promise, never again! I meant it.” She said solemnly and sincerely. Better just forget it ever happened if possible. Like I could do that she thought ruefully. 

“Anyways, my friend’s mom (a different friend Yuiichi! I don’t talk to her anymore! Don’t roll your eyes at me, it’s true!) is a chef! She’s giving out basic cooking lessons for Japanese food.” She started excitedly.

“Okay… so you want to take these lessons since you can’t cook. Good idea, aneki.” He commented, wary. She never told him what she was up to unless-

“The lessons are pretty cheap. You would find them useful too since you will move out in another two years.” She pointed out.

“No.” He said shortly.

“Yuu-iii-chiiii.” She dragged out his name in a whine. “It will be practical. You’ll end up living alone when you go off to university.” She said, unleashing her secret weapon. She knew her brother saw the value in it and that was her best bet. He was so boring and practical all the time. He needs to learn to have fun, she thought, not for the first time.

He looked conflicted, weighing the pros and cons internally. He thought about it for a while and sighed deeply. “How many people will be there in a class?” He asked finally.

“About 20.” His sister mumbled in response twirling her hair.

“20! No. I’m not coming with you.” He said stubbornly. He was sure all the people in that class would be around aneki’s age. He had no intention of being surrounded by that many girls in his free time. His precious summer vacation time. The manga cafe, the arcade plans. His unread books were calling out to him. He could just see his ideal vacation plans slipping away.

“Well… I already signed you up. Class is starting tomorrow.” She said finally. “It takes place everyday for two weeks, so you’ll still get time to mope around at home or date or whatever it is you do.”

“Aneki!!” He glared at her. 

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Just, help me out a bit.” She begged him shamelessly.

“You’re moving in a week!” He pointed out shocked.

“So? I can manage both!” She replied easily.

“Aneki, you are dragging me into helping because you can’t!!” He pointed out, shocked at her easy-going attitude. He rubbed his temples. His sister always knew how to get on his nerves.

“Yuiichi, you worry too much. Don’t stress about every little thing. Have faith in me.” She said, giving him a bright smile. 

“Fine, but since that was already decided for me I’ll come. But, you will make this up to me… one day. Now, sort your clothes so I can fold them.” He said, smiling at her passive-aggressively. He knew there was no point in yelling at her (as much as he’d like to), but he had learned that his passive-aggressive smile got the best results since she got creeped out by it.

“Don’t look at me like that!” She threw a shirt at his face, but began sorting her clothes at a faster pace.

They worked in silence and in another three hours all the clothes were sorted and folded neatly into boxes. Ready for the move.

“Yuichi-” She started.

“If you ask me about where I put your ‘date’ clothes one more time, I swear-” He snapped.

She surprised him by pulling him into a tight hug, stroking his hair softly. His eyes widened seeing her suddenly look so small. Oh yeah, she was always that height, I just grew, he thought. I can’t believe she was always this small.

“Thanks for your help.” She pulled away quickly and pushed him out of her room, slamming the door shut as soon as he was out. 

“I’ll wake you up tomorrow and drag you there if I have to!” She warned from inside her room.

Yuiichi stared in the hall at her closed door in shock. Even after 15 years… no he was sure even after a lifetime he wouldn’t be able to predict what his sister would do. He walked back into his room and got ready for bed. He needed all his energy if he had to deal with this cooking class for the next two weeks.


End file.
